| > | | | | water. The urine will become concentrated and more |
| Dehydration occurs when you lose more fluid than | | | | yellow in color. |
| you take in and your body doesn't have enough | | | | As the level of water loss increases, more symptoms |
| water and other fluids to carry out its normal | | | | can become apparent. The following are further signs |
| functions. If lost fluid remains unreplenished, you may | | | | and symptoms of dehydration: |
| suffer serious consequences. Common causes of | | | | Dry mouth |
| dehydration include intense bouts of diarrhea, | | | | The eyes stop making tears |
| vomiting, fever or excessive sweating. Inadequate | | | | Sweating may stop |
| intake of water during hot weather or exercise also | | | | Muscle cramps |
| may deplete your body's water stores. Anyone may | | | | Nausea and vomiting |
| become dehydrated, but young children, older adults | | | | Lightheadedness (especially when standing). |
| and people with chronic illnesses are most at risk. Mild | | | | The body tries to maintain cardiac output (the |
| dehydration can cause symptoms such as weakness, | | | | amount of blood that is pumped by the heart to the |
| dizziness and fatigue. Severe dehydration is a | | | | body); and if the amount of fluid in the intravascular |
| life-threatening medical emergency. | | | | space is decreased, the body has to increase the |
| You can usually reverse mild to moderate | | | | heart rate, which causes blood vessels to constrict to |
| dehydration by increasing your intake of fluids, but | | | | maintain blood pressure. This coping mechanism |
| severe cases need immediate medical treatment. The | | | | begins to fail as the level of dehydration increases. |
| safest approach is not to become dehydrated in the | | | | With severe dehydration, confusion and weakness |
| first place. You can do that by monitoring your fluid | | | | will occur as the brain and other body organs receive |
| loss during hot weather, illness or exercise, and | | | | less blood. Finally, coma and organ failure will occur if |
| drinking enough liquids to replace what you lose. | | | | the dehydration remains untreated. |
| Causes | | | | Treatment |
| Your body may lose too much fluids from: | | | | Drinking fluids is usually sufficient for mild dehydration. |
| Vomiting or diarrhea | | | | It is better to have frequent, small amounts of fluid |
| Excessive urine output, such as with | | | | (using a teaspoon or syringe for an infant or child) |
| uncontrolled diabetes or diuretic use | | | | rather than trying to force large amounts of fluid at |
| Excessive sweating (for example, from | | | | one time. Drinking too much fluid at once can bring on |
| exercise) | | | | more vomiting. |
| Fever | | | | Electrolyte solutions or freezer pops are especially |
| You might not drink enough fluids because of: | | | | effective. These are available at pharmacies. Sport |
| Nausea | | | | drinks contain a lot of sugar and can cause or |
| Loss of appetite due to illness | | | | worsen diarrhea. In infants and children, avoid using |
| Sore throat or mouth sores | | | | water as the primary replacement fluid. |
| Dehydration in sick children is often a combination of | | | | Intravenous fluids and hospitalization may be |
| both -- refusing to eat or drink anything while also | | | | necessary for moderate to severe dehydration. The |
| losing fluid from vomiting, diarrhea, or fever. | | | | doctor will try to identify and then treat the cause of |
| Symptoms | | | | the dehydration. |
| The body's initial responses to dehydration are: | | | | Most cases of stomach viruses (also called viral |
| 1. Thirst to increase water intake along with | | | | gastroenteritis) tend to resolve on their own after a |
| 2. Decreased urine output to try to conserve | | | | few days. |